Surf contest scores with perfect waves

Surfer, Aryn Farris catches some air as he flies off the crest of a wave during the Shoe City Pro, the second event in the American Pro Surfing Series at Huntington Beach. MACKENZIE REISS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

The second stop of the American Pro Surfing Series brought a handful of pro and amateur surfers to compete on the south side of the Huntington Beach pier Friday.

Many agreed that it was the perfect surfing day, with peaky 3-5-foot waves showing through the day under sunny skies.

“It’s super fun out there,” said Newport Beach surfer Erica Hosseini, who won an APSS event last year. “The waves are pumping, this is probably the best I’ve seen Huntington in a long time.”

The series, sponsored by Shoe City, is a domestic, three-stop tour to give surfers the chance to compete near home. The series allows mid-ranked competitors the chance to showcase their skills in a contest and keep their surfing sharp, as well as keep their names in the public.

There were 32 men and 16 women competing in the one-day event, among them big names such as former World Tour surfers Nate Yeomans, Chris Ward and Kalani Robb, as well as local Huntington surfers such as Chris Waring and Brad Ettinger. The crop of surfers that entered the event were a mix of young surfers, up-and-comers, and legends all combined in a pro setting.

San Clemente surfer Kevin Schulz, 18, was happy to be in the mix.

“It was really fun, there’s a ton of waves out there. I was just lucky to get on a couple and get the scores I needed to make the heat,” said Schulz, on his way to the quarterfinals.

Schulz said the event gives surfers a chance to compete.

“There are a lot of guys in California who surf so well, but they’re not on the level with the professionals – even though they should be,” he said.

For female surfers such as Hosseini, who surfs on the Association of Surfing Professionals World Qualifying Series, it keeps her competitive feet wet.

“There’s so much down time, especially toward the end of the year when there’s not as many events,” she said, just after securing a spot in the semi-finals. “It definitely keeps you in contest mode; it’s so great for people to be able to come and not have to travel internationally. I love this event.”

The Ghetto Juice Magazine Expression Session at the end of the event gave the chance for 16 of the top surfers to let loose – and the chance to win $1,000.

“I think we’re really stoked to sponsor the expression session, and just giving the surfers another way to make money is really what it’s all about,” said co-publisher Skip Snead. ”There’s not a lot of money in pro surfing.”

Snead said he hopes this event evolved past Huntington Beach.

“Right now, it’s the only domestic tour that I know of in the United States, and it would be good to see it expand throughout the country,” he said.

The 2013 Oktoberfest Skimboard Championships will go down at Balboa Pier in Newport Beach Saturday and Sunday, with a world champion crowned at the end of the event.

The event – put on by Exile Skimboards and Main Street Surf Shop – is now in its ninth year, and will bring about 100 amateurs and 40 pro skimboarders to battle it out on the south side of the pier.

It should be an exciting event as Laguna Beach’s Sam Stinnett and Austin Keen, originally from Georgia but now living in Dana Point, go up against each other for a tight race for this year’s World Title. It’s the eighth and final stop on the United Skim Tour.

“It’s fantastic, this year could go down as the best contest ever,” said event organizer Brian Boyle. “We have the perfect set up with offshore winds expected and 3 – 5 foot swell coming from the south, which is perfect.”

The event is free to watch.

Information: exileskimboards.com!/Oktoberfest.

Sandcastle contest

The 52nd annual Sandcastle Contest will be a great way to spend the day on the beach, with competitors making elaborate designs from sand.

The contest starts at 11 a.m., and competitors will be making their creations until about 2:30 p.m. Judging will happen until about 4:30 p.m. before a winner is announced.

This year’s theme is “Haunted Castles.”

Information: newportbeach.com.

Boardroom

If you want to get a taste of surf culture, head over to the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa for The Boardroom on Saturday and Sunday.

The tradeshow, which is open to the public, is expected to draw about 700,000 people. The Boardroom is a hybrid tradeshow mixed with public events. Legendary shaper Terry Martin, a San Clemente shaper who died last year, will be honored in the “Icons of Foam Tribute to the Master.”

The Boardroom “offer shapers a way to reach buying networks as well as find new retail outlets for their craft,” according to the website. The consumer surf show focuses on equipment needed to go surfing: surfboards, fins, wax, wetsuits, leashes, bags, board shorts, sunglasses, sunscreen, surf travel agencies and much more.

Surfer, Aryn Farris catches some air as he flies off the crest of a wave during the Shoe City Pro, the second event in the American Pro Surfing Series at Huntington Beach. MACKENZIE REISS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Surfer, Aryn Farris carves into a wave during the Shoe City Pro, the second event in the American Pro Surfing Series at Huntington Beach. MACKENZIE REISS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Surfer, Jeremy Ryan competes at Friday morning's Shoe City Pro competition where he placed fourth in his heat. MACKENZIE REISS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
David Giddings carves his board back and forth along the crest of a wave during the Shoe City Pro competition. MACKENZIE REISS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Cory Arrambide caught some air during the third men's heat during the Shoe City Pro surfing competition at Huntington Beach on Friday morning. Arrambide score qualified him for the men's quarter final. MACKENZIE REISS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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